(Dallas, Texas – Thursday, April 14th)
With only seven players that have prior LFL experience on the roster and a rookie coaching staff, growing pains are to be expected for the Desire as it makes a return to the league after a five year hiatus. There is enough talent and desire – pun intended – on this team that Dallas could make an impact in its first season back… that’s if everything comes together.
No matter what level of football, everything starts with the quarterback and the Desire have a talented one under center in former L.A. Temptation signal caller, Michelle Angel. With so many new faces to the league on the roster, it will help having a player at a key position that has played. In camp Angel has shown the moxie and confidence of an established veteran in the league – which she now is considering the massive turnover at the position league-wide – and she will be called upon to be one of the leaders of not only the offense but the team as a whole.
LFL veterans joining Angel in Dallas:
Monika Jaramillo: A former teammate of Angel in L.A, the pint-sized dynamo brings a lot of energy on both sides of the ball. In Los Angeles, she was primarily used as a receiver but so far during training camp, and while she has had her share of success on the defensive side of the ball it hasn’t been an easy transition. “It’s been kinda tough in the beginning…I felt kinda down on myself. I thought I had pretty good hands in LA, but I came to Dallas and I was fifth in the lineup, but I wanted to start, so I had to pick it up.”
Shawnte’ Bunting: Bunting spent the 2014 season with the Omaha Heart and while she still appears to be shaking the rust off from a year-long hiatus, she has shown to still possess the quickness and agility needed to be a factor at the running back position.
Sunshine Misa-Uli: Having played two seasons in Las Vegas, Misa-Uli will be a player counted on to provide depth at defensive end and be a reliable safety valve at tight end position for Angel.
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Bunting
BuntingDanielle Hawkins, Nikki Pugh, and Lori Wright: This talented trio was a part of the original Dallas Desire team and will be looking to build upon the familiarity of playing together.
Hawkins is making her return home to Dallas after spending the 2014 season in Omaha with Bunting. The gritty two-way player’s role on the team will be simple; be a leader on defense and protect Angel — there is no legit backup option as former Desire signal caller Linda Brenner is no longer with the team.
Slated to play receiver and defensive back, Pugh is another Dallas native that is excited to be wearing the hometown colors again. Like Jaramillo, Pugh has spent most of camp on the defensive side of the ball, but has shown the ball skills to move to the other side of the ball needed.
Wright continues the trend of versatile players for Coach Bullitt as she has spent time both at running back and in the defense. Because of the depth and talent in the backfield, her best chance at seeing significant playing time may come on defense.
Newcomers to keep an eye on:
Victoria Thomas- Power-back/OL/DL
It is almost shocking to find out that this will be the first year of play for the former Rutgers Volleyball player. Throughout training camp, Thomas has brought an unbridled level of aggression on both sides of the ball that has had to be reigned in for the sake of her teammates. Like many of the Desire players Thomas will be called on to play both ways and the rookie has taken it a step further as she has shown the ability to play three positions; power back, offensive guard, and defensive end. She is still learning the intricacies of the offensive line position but the brute force that she brings as a punishing runner and tackler should make her a focal point of opponent’s game plans this season.
One of the fastest players on the team White has shown that once she gets the ball in her hands that she has the ability to take it the house. This upcoming season she will be lining up at receiver and speed back. Coach Bullitt will have the enviable task of having to find creative ways of getting White the ball.
Jade Randle – WR
As with many of the newcomers, the biggest obstacle for Randle will be learning the small nuances of being a professional receiver — route running, blocking, etc. But if she is able to get those things down… watch out. Early during training camp Randle showed the ability to be a big-play receiver as a she had a spectacular catch that would have made even Odell Beckham Jr. proud.
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White
WhiteAshley Dixon- DE
One of the last cuts during tryouts, it wasn’t her athleticism nor potential that kept Dixon off the final roster — it was her inability to stay healthy. She was dealing a nagging injury and with so few roster spots, the team couldn’t hold a spot for someone it was unsure would be able to play. Weeks into training camp a roster spot opened and Dixon seized the opportunity and could be a player that makes a great impact on the defense this year.
Coach Bullitt has reason to excited for the upcoming season — he believes that the team will be able to surprise many — but he also knows that there still is a lot of work left to be done before the May 7th season opener against the L.A. Temptation.
Having played in the NFL Coach Bullitt and his staff bring a wealth of knowledge to the practice field and in game preparation for the upcoming season, but he recognizes that there’s still a lot of work left to be done before they head out to California. “Trying to get them to understand the concepts of football is very important. Their level of understanding is what’s low. They can watch a game and know that someone is fast or someone is strong and can throw. They don’t understand why he threw the slant or why he pump faked and threw the ball deep… that’s what we are trying to get them to understand.”
The quicker the players grasp this, the sooner this team will be able to show that their pre-season ranking of No.5 was too low – but if they don’t, it could be a long season in the Big D.
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